Soccer player Ki Seong-yong, who was charged with violating the Farmland Act
The police could not find any evidence to refute Ki Sung-yong's claim that he paid only money to build the soccer center, so he sent only his father, Young-ok Ki (former Gwangju FC manager) to the prosecution.
The Gwangju Police Agency's Real Estate Speculation Special Investigation Unit (Anti-Corruption and Economic Crime Investigation Unit) announced today (11th) that they had sent Mr. Ki without detention on charges of violating the Farmland Act.
Ki was accused of submitting a false agricultural management plan (violation of the Farmland Act) in the process of purchasing 10 farmland, including farmland in Geumho-dong, Seo-gu, Gwangju, with his son Seong-yong Ki (violation of the Farmland Act) and illegally changing the shape of part of the land ( (violation of the Act on Land Planning and Utilization) was investigated.
Ki Seong-yong said during the police investigation, "My father said he would build a soccer center, so he only sent money."
The police intensively investigated whether Ki Seong-yong was aware of or involved in the purchase of farmland, but decided not to appeal because there was no evidence to overturn the statement.
Regarding his father, Ki Seong-yong, he applied the 'Penalty Rule', saying that he violated the Farmland Act without his knowledge.
In the process, Ki was also charged with forgery of private documents and forgery for the act of submitting a false agricultural management plan without his son's knowledge.
In addition to Mr. Ki, the police sent three civil servants from the Seo-gu Office in Gwangju in charge of farmland affairs to indictment without detention on charges of negligence.
An official from the Gwangju Police Agency explained, "We decided not to appeal because we could not be held responsible because we could not find any circumstance that Ki Sung-yong was directly involved in the purchase of farmland, such as that he was in the UK during the purchase process."
(Photo = Yonhap News)